Bumper structures configured to absorb an impact via internal deformation of a bumper at a collision of a vehicle with an obstacle are known. The known bumper structures include a bumper face, a safety plate covered by the bumper face, and a bumper beam supporting the safety plate and extending in a vehicle width direction that are arranged in the named order as seen from the front of the vehicle. The safety plate has a generally U-shaped cross section and is mounted to the bumper beam while assuming a horizontal U-shaped position with its open end fitted with the bumper beam. The safety plate has a deformation guiding part provided at a lower part thereof attached to a bottom side of the bumper beam so that the safety plate is allowed to start deforming at the deformation guiding part and undergo complete collapsing to thereby absorb the impact (for example, see Patent Literature 1). Another known safety plate includes top and bottom walls having bent portions bent upward so that the safety plate is allowed to undergo deformation or collapsing at the bent portions as it absorbs an impact (for example, see Patent Literature 2).
The safety plates shown in Patent Literatures 1 and 2 require a long collapsing length for absorbing an impact. This means that a stroke length of the safety plates which corresponds to a distance between the safety plate and a front surface of the bumper beam is long and, hence, the entire length of the vehicle is extended correspondingly. Thus, a vehicle structure which is capable of reducing the stroke length while securing an impact absorbing capacity comparable to that of the conventional structures is desired.